Manoj Tiwary, former India and Bengal cricketer has leveled fresh allegations against ex-India skipper MS Dhoni of favoritism. He stated that he was dropped for 14 matches despite scoring an ODI century in 2011 against West Indies, but players like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Suresh Raina continued in the XI despite poor form, only because of Dhoni.
The now-retired player averaged 99.50 in the 2006–07 Ranji Trophy but had to wait a long time for his international debut owing to injuries. However, his 2008 debut was not very memorable. He scored his first and only ODI century against the West Indies in Chennai in 2011 but was benched for months following the game.
MS Dhoni was the captain of the side then.
"He was the captain. Team India runs according to the planning of the skipper. In state teams, things are different, but in Team India, it's all about the captain. If you see, during Kapil Dev's time it was he who ran the show; during Sunil Gavaskar's tenure it was his call; the same was during Mohammad Azharuddin's tenure. After that, Dada, and so on. This will go on unless a strict administrator comes and makes a set rule," Manoj Tiwary told Lallantop.
"You see Ajit Agarkar (current BCCI chief selector), and you feel he can take strong decisions. He can disagree with the coach. As far as me being dropped for 14 matches after scoring a century, if a player is dropped after scoring a century, obviously I want to know the answer. After a century I was praised, but post that I did not have any inkling. At that time, youngsters used to feel afraid, including me. If you ask something, who knows what way it could have been taken? His career is on the line,” Tiwary said about his India career that didn’t take off.
He stated that players like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Suresh Raina were not scoring runs but were persisted with despite poor form.
“The players who were in the team then were Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, and Rohit Sharma. After that, the tour, which took place, they were not making runs. And here I was, even after making a century and winning Player of the Match, unable to find a place in the playing XI. I was dropped for 14 matches, which took place in a space of six months. At that time the dropped player did not get enough practice. I wanted to retire but, due to family responsibilities, could not,” he stated.
Manoj Tiwary is currently a minister of state for affairs of sports and youth in Bengal’s TMC government.